General Information

The basic layout of the course is modeled after a figure eight. It has bright lines, stars and planets in the background, a couple of ramps, and some Copy Chance Wheels on the track, which are the only means of obtaining Copy Abilities. The player unlocks it by racing 100 laps total in the Air Ride mode, or by using a Free Check on the appropriate Checklist box. The track itself is translucent, providing a dramatic view of a fantastical outer space scene, with abstract futuristic elements like a tunnel made of neon-colored grids. Its recommended number of laps is 2. This is the only course in Kirby Air Ride that does not unlock anything in the Checklist.

Along with the Celestial Valley course and the Drag RaceStadium events, Nebula Belt is one of the few parts of the game where the Formula Star is an effective choice of Air Ride Machine. This can be attributed to Nebula Belt's wide track, long straightaways, and lack of obstacles or enemies to hinder its acceleration. Having plenty of room to reach its maximum speed, the Formula Star can easily gain huge leads here against Air Ride Machines less suited to the course, such as the Bulk Star. When the players' machines are more balanced, there tends to be more frequent vehicular combat with Quick Spin attacks, and offensive use of Copy Abilities than on any other Air Ride course, due to the lack of alternate pathways or obstacles that would separate the racers from each other. With damage enabled, it becomes highly likely that at least one participant will retire before finishing the race.

Time trial runs of this course in the Free Run mode can be significantly affected by the random nature of the Copy Chance Wheels, as there are no ability-carrying enemies that would appear in set patterns.

Trivia

Visually and thematically, Nebula Belt is reminiscent of the Final Destination stage in Super Smash Bros. Melee, which was also made by HAL Laboratory using the same engine. Both Final Destination and Nebula Belt are hidden stages with minimalistic, flat layouts that take place in technologically-accented dark voids, with similar visual motifs like neon grids.